"Every motor vehicle, motor-assisted bicycle and bicycle shall be equipped with an alarm bell, gong or horn, which shall be kept in good working order and sounded whenever it is reasonably necessary to notify pedestrians or others of its approach." (I have always wanted a gong for one of my bikes, but the ability to deploy it quickly has made me hesitant.)

It's a fine that totals $110. Quite a bit to pay for forgetting to get a bicycle bell that can cost as little as $7.

Pictured above are a dringdring bell by Annie Legroulx (sadly out of production); a turtle-shaped squeaky horn and a custom bell by Electra. The Electra bell was about $10. The dringdring was about double that. You can pay up to $40-$50 for an air horn, if you want one.

I used the turtle horn for about a year, but found that, especially on multi-use trails, the high-pitched "squeak-squeak" wasn't taken too seriously by people I was overtaking. Maybe they thought it was a kid toy or a dog toy. They often didn't turn around to look back or move over.

So I went back to the traditional bicycle bell. Most people can hear the bell, and begin to move to the side of the trail without looking back.

And that, more than not having to pay the fine, is the point of a bicycle bell.

It's an alarm system. It alerts people ahead (whether walking or riding) that you are moving at a speed that will overtake them.

Ideally, you'll use your voice as well. Whether it's a curt "Passing on the left" or a more pleasant "Hi folks, I'll be passing you on your left," the intention is to alert someone that you are coming through.

Without that alert, they could easily walk into you, turn left suddenly to avoid some object on the path, or simply gesticulate right into your face while they are making a point with their walking companion.

Cyclists who breeze by pedestrians, or other cyclists, without the simple courtesy of ringing a bell or saying a few words, are a danger to themselves and to others.